Declaration of allergens on the label of food products purchased on the European market

The recent introduction of legislation concerning the declaration of allergenic ingredients on the label of food products within the European Union is aimed at a better protection of allergic consumers. The food industry plays a pivotal role in this protection by informing the consumer and declaring allergenic ingredients on the label of food products. Furthermore, the industry needs to manage allergens in order to avoid their unintentional presence in products. The current situation regarding the declaration of allergenic ingredients as well as precautionary warnings on food labels is discussed, and assessed by analysing the labels of 550 food products.